Bharela Ringna Batata

21. December 2016

This recipe is a very typical dish from the Indian state of Gujarat on the western coast, my home state and is one of my favourite dishes. It reminds me of home and is my comfort food. Whenever I find the baby aubergines in our Indian grocery store I always have to make this dish. I like to eat it with plain rice and natural yogurt or Tur Daal khichadi. (another recipe post on its own).

When we were growing up we ate very seasonal food, certain vegetables were only available at certain time of the year. Aubergines are one of them, they are at their best in the Indian winter time. Markets are full of Aubergines which are so tender they melt in the mouth when cooked well, with no bitterness at all. There are so many different curries made from Aubergine but the stuffed aubergine curry was, and still is, one of my favourites! I really miss the Indian aubergines here in Europe. The closest ones are the round Italian purple aubergines.

So here is the recipe hope you like it as much as I do. 😋😊 💕

Bharela Ringna Batata (Stuffed Aubergine & Potatoes)

Serves 4 people.

Ingredients

300g baby aubergine

300g small potatoes

1/4 cup peanuts

2 cloves garlic grated

1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander

2 tbsp coriander powder

1 tsp turmeric powder

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp garam masala

1 tsp mustard seeds

1 tsp cumin seeds

a pinch of hing (Asafoetida)

2 tbsp of sunflower oil

1 large fresh tomato chopped

1 cup of water

salt to taste

Instructions

Wash the aubergines, trim the stems leaving just over one cm.

Wash and peel the potatoes

For the stuffing, first grind the peanuts to a coarse powder either in a pestle and mortar or in a small food processor.

Take the powder out in a large bowl and add all the powder spices and salt along with fresh coriander, mix it well. Leave it aside until you prepare the aubergine and potatoes ready to stuff.

To prepare the aubergine for stuffing you need to make two cuts to it. Make one cut starting from the stem side cutting down but not all the way down, only 3/4 of the way down the long side towards the base. Now turn the aubergine around and make the second, cut at 90 degrees offset to the first, cut starting from the base towards the stem side, again only cut 3/4 of the way.

Now for the potatoes, only make one cut on the longest side, again remember don’t cut all the way through, only 3/4 of the way. See my video here for reference: https://www.instagram.com/p/BON0uYZDzUi/

Now its time to put the stuffing in the cuts of aubergine and potatoes. Keep any extra filling on the side we will be using that later for the gravy.

Chop the tomato into 1 inch cubes.

Once the vegetables are stuffed and ready to cook, heat the two table spoons of the oil in a heavy bottom pan or a pressure cooker. When its hot add the mustard seeds, as they start to pop add the cumin seeds and then the asafoetida. Now add the stuffed vegetables, stir them around with a spoon and cook them for a minute in the oil.

Now add the left over stuffing masala, cook it for a minute then add the chopped tomatoes and water. Put the lid on to the pan and reduce the heat to medium and cook it for 30 to 40 minutes Do check for the amount of water in the pan after 15 minutes add a little more water if needed. After 30 min check that the potatoes are cooked (use knife to check they are soft and cooked through).

If you are used a pressure cooker, after adding the tomatoes and water, close the lid and cook it on the high pressure setting for only 10 minutes. (please check the pressure cooker’s manual as each brand is different)

Once the curry is cooked add more freshly chopped coriander on the top. Serve it hot with Roti (Chapatti flatbread) or plain steamed rice and salad. Enjoy !